THE GREAT nephew of English writer and eccentric Edith Sitwell will present a remarkable and unconventional composition on which she collaborated with Sir William Walton to conclude this year’s North York Moors Chamber Music Festival.
Well-known food writer and critic William Sitwell will be joined by BBC Radio 4 newsreader and presenter Zeb Soanes to perform the great masterpiece which is Façade: an entertainment, which incorporates Edith Sitwell’s verses set to Walton’s music. William Sitwell will introduce the recital with a talk about his great aunt.
The concert will also feature Eggs or Anarchy, a recent work composed as a companion piece to Façade by Ben Palmer, Artistic Director of Covent Garden Sinfonia.
It is based on William Sitwell’s account of how Minister of Food Lord Woolton fed the nation during the Second World War.
The Sitwell events will be part of the final concert of the fortnight-long festival, at St Hilda’s Church, Westcliff, Whitby at 5pm on Saturday, August 25.
William Sitwell is the grandson of Edith Sitwell’s brother, Sacheverell. With their brother Osbert, the pair spent many summers at the Sitwell family’s home in Scarborough, Woodend, where Edith was born in 1887.
Celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, the North York Moors Chamber Music Festival brings world-class musicians to perform in churches across the North York Moors.
In 2018, it focuses entirely on British composers, including, as well as Walton, Michael Tippett, Kenneth Leighton, Edward Elgar, Frank Bridge and Henry Purcell.
“We’re absolutely thrilled to be welcoming William Sitwell and Zeb Soanes to this year’s festival,” said Jamie. “Façade is a truly unique and highly original work which was written to complement Edith Sitwell’s remarkable and experimental verse.”
The North York Moors Chamber Music Festival runs from August 12 to 25 August, with 11 concerts at 10 churches across the area. The Festival has just been shortlisted in this year’s Welcome to Yorkshire White Rose Awards in the Arts and Culture category.
Tickets for all the concerts are £12.50, and free for under-30s. To book go to www.northyorkmoorsfestival.com or phone call 07722 038990.
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